Former Mets Pitcher Faces Year-Long Suspension for Violent On-Field Outburst

By

J.P. Hoornstra writes and edits Major League Baseball content. A veteran of 20 years of sports coverage for daily newspapers in California, J.P. covered MLB, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Los Angeles Angels (occasionally of Anaheim) from 2012-23 for the Southern California News Group. His first book, The 50 Greatest Dodgers Games of All-Time, published in 2015. In 2016, he won an Associated Press Sports Editors award for breaking news coverage. He once recorded a keyboard solo on the same album as two of the original Doors. 

Jon Paul Hoornstra

Contributing Sports Writer

🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.

A former pitcher for the New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks was ejected from a Mexican League game Tuesday, and took out his frustration on two umpires.

The violent outburst resulted in a suspension that will sideline Lopez for the remainder of the 2025 season and all of 2026, as well, according to multiple reports Wednesday.

Lopez, 32, pitched for the Arizona Diamobndbacks (2018-21) and New York Mets (2022) across parts of five major league seasons. The right-hander was 2-3 with a 4.89 ERA in 45 games in the independent Mexican League this season.

More news: Former Dodgers All-Star Announces Immediate Retirement From Baseball

A video of the incident posted to Twitter/X by Beisbol Puro shows Lopez, pitching for the Unión Laguna Algodoneros against the Tijuana Toros in a postseason game, being ejected in the ninth inning of a 2-2 game.

The right-hander then kicks the leg of the umpire who ejected him before being separated by teammates. After shouting at the umpire on the field, Lopez eventually returns to his own dugout — then runs back on the field, shouting some more. Along the way he appears to make contact with home plate umpire Ulises Dominguez.

The Toros scored two runs in the ninth inning, both charged to Lopez, en route to a 4-3 victory. Laguna leads the series, two games to one.

More news: Former Angels Third Baseman Passes Away

The suspension is a dramatic setback in the career of Lopez, a Cuban native who signed with the Diamondbacks in January 2015.

In his only season with the Mets, Lopez appeared in eight major league games and another 29 with Triple-A Syracuse.

In 2023, Lopez spent the entire season with the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball. He went 0-1 with a 3.32 ERA in 22 games in his only season in Japan.

The Mexican League postseason is a haven for former major league players. Besides Lopez — who notched the save for Union Laguna on Monday — several ex-big leaguers are taking part in the series.

Jack Mayfield, Rangel Ravelo, Tomas Telis, Silvio Bracho, Daniel Zamora, Roel Ramirez, Jose Hernandez, Ralph Garza, Diego Castillo, Jose Alvarez, Hernan Perez, Junior Lake, Ali Solis, and Franchy Cordero were in uniform Tuesday for Tijuana.

More news: Dodgers’ 2024 World Series Champion Reveals Comeback Plans

The Union Laguna roster, managed by ex-major leaguer Jose Molina, features Fernando Abad, Travis Lakins Sr., Taylor Williams, Jonathan Schoop, Jonathan Villar, Didi Gregorius, Mark Payton and Brian O’Grady.

For more MLB news, visit Newsweek Sports.